
A restless youth from Dresden, raised under the gentle guidance of his grandmother, discovers early that the sea calls louder than any classroom. He trades schoolrooms for the rolling decks of merchant ships, learning the ropes, the languages of wind and tide, and the camaraderie of sailors from every corner of the globe. Those formative voyages shape a character as stubborn as the rigging and as daring as a storm‑ridden hull, setting the stage for a future beyond ordinary naval service. By the time he returns to formal education, his heart already beats to the rhythm of the ocean.
Soon the young man earns his commission and finds himself back among the decks, this time as an officer navigating both peacetime duties and the simmering tensions of an increasingly hostile world. His experiences range from the mundane grind of daily patrols to the exhilaration of daring maneuvers that hint at the audacious tactics he will later employ. Amid personal doubts and the weight of responsibility, he begins to forge the reputation that will make his name synonymous with unconventional naval warfare. The early chapters lay a vivid foundation for the remarkable adventures that follow.
Language
de
Duration
~10 hours (581K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Norbert H. Langkau, Martin Oswald and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
Release date
2014-05-17
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1881–1966
An aristocrat who turned real-life sea raids into legend, he became famous for bold exploits at the helm of the sailing raider Seeadler during World War I. Later, he carried that larger-than-life reputation into books, lectures, and world voyages.
View all books